Caverns & Chapels & Country Fairs

Lots of places to visit

Caverns, Chapels & Country Fairs

Lots of places to visit and Things to See!!
There are a Lot of what we call caverns & caves in this part of the world. Here they are called Grottes. We plan to explore many of them over the next few months. The 1st one we have actually been inside so far is called Grotte de la Salamandre, and it was quite stunning, as I think you will agree when you see all of the pictures. The one below is with natural lighting, but they have enhanced the experience by adding colored lights in may parts.  

The Grotte de la Salamandre is an enormous magical cavity adorned with Crystal Giants, titanic stalagmites set in colors and sounds. It is accessible to all and offers activities for all!

Discovered in 1965, opened to the public in 2013, gold medal for tourism 2015 (find out more…), it now makes it possible to welcome all audiences in an enchantment of lights and sounds, where the lighting “natural” alternates with incredible colors.

These are just a few of the incredible views from inside. You can see more on our website, in the pictures section.

We also took another hike up a mountain to view a cool Chapelle, but even though the info on the web said it was open, we found the doors closed and locked, but it was still worth the hike. 

It is outside the town of Lirac, which is about 17 miles/27 kilometers, or 30 minutes south of us. This is the Hermitage of Ste Baume It started out as a natural cave in which a statue of the Virgin and Child was discovered in 1647. It was converted into a chapel and became a place of pilgrimage.
The hermitage adjoining the cave dates from 1712 and housed hermits until 1905. Since 1976, the association Les Amis de la Sainte Baume has safeguarded this exceptional site, a place of silence and healing.

We spent most of the weekend visiting farms (Fermes) around the area, as there was an annual event called “de Ferme en Ferme”, where a lot of the local farms open their doors to the public, to give small tours, or talk about what they do, and to display their goods. It was everything from farms who raise beef & pork, or bees, or lavender, to making wine, cheese, or olive oil, and many other things. It was quite an education, not to mention some Beautiful driving scenery. Needless to say, we came home with a Lot of honey and olive oil, and a few other special items we will enjoy.

Some, like the one above, called La Femee (the Family) which is a Moulin a Huille d Ussel, or Ussel Oil Mill, not only made Great EVOO, but also raised pigs, and made Awesome sausages and other things Pork.

We also visited a beekeeper called Les Ruches Amielh.                                       

Daisy, a dear friend of Catherine, the owner, spent well over an hour with us, telling us all about the process of raising bees, and making Miel/honey. They tasted us through a number of Very different honeys. Of course we brought some home 🙂

We also visited L’or d’Occitane, at Domaine de Catresse, outside the town of Arpaillargues, which is near Uzes. They make 4 different kinds of EVOO. Apparently they have to have a Lot of different kinds of olive trees in order to pollinate the only 4 types from which they make oil. The 4 oils they make are Picholine, Negrette, L’Aglandeau and Bouteillan. Some are fairly spicy, and have a nice slightly bitter finish. The Picholine was our Fav, and we brought home a large can, which will come to good use, I promise 🙂

This next week, we will spend some time at the AirB&B, Mas de Toulair, where will take delivery of the beds for the suites. I will post some pictures of the place soon, so you can see the progress. We hope to have everything ready to open up by mid June, fingers crossed. 

Please remember to click on the link below, to see a Lot more pictures and read about some of our other adventures.
Also if you have time, and want to look at some Awesome pictures that Sharon has taken on our recent outings, go to https://guesthouseadventures.com/ and click on the “Photos here” tab at the top. 
The folder titles will correspond to each newsletter.

For a Lot more pictures, please visit our website and by clicking on the link below:s for tagging along. We Love the company!!

Ray & Sharon

things to see!